Fine Line
by Gelphie44
Summary: Story focuses on Galinda and Elphaba back at Shiz. At first they loathed each other but after an accident sent Elphaba to the infirmary, things quickly change for the two. Pairings: Gelphie
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

**CHAPTER 1**

It was a dreary day in early November. Elphaba sat behind her large wooden desk at Shiz practicing for her sorcery exam the next day. She had planned on going down to the lake to practice, but the rain that fell outside kept her in. She was not too happy about the change in her plans but decided to make the most of it.

She had been a little stressed lately and was looking forward to getting away for a little bit. Things with her roommate were getting out of hand. The night before last, Galinda had said some hateful things towards the green girl. She had called her a waste of space.

Usually that sort of comment did not bother her. She was used to being called that by her her father and sister Nessa. They had never much appreciated her and so she learned not to expect much from people. But for some reason the insult that came from the blonde princess seemed to disturb her more than usual.

She was just about to finish chanting a spell when she heard the doorknob twist. The tell tale sign that her peace and quite was over.

"I see you are working on your spells. Not like you have anything better to do." Galinda huffed as she went into the bathroom and shut the door.

Elphaba hadn't had time to reply to her comment before Galinda had shut herself in the bathroom. Galinda was always doing that. Making rude comments then leaving the scene of the crime before Elphaba could form a rebuttal.

She decided not to let it stand this time. Getting out of her chair, she walked over to the bathroom to knock on the door.

"You know I actually do have things to do. Not that it is any of your concern. I just couldn't do them because of the rain." Elphaba said after a couple of knocks on the door.

There was a pause after Elphaba had finished talking. She didn't know whether or not she should sit back down or try and provoke the blonde to finally say something. Galinda's voice interrupted her thoughts so she didn't have to decide.

"You don't see me complaining about the rain." Galinda said as she opened the door to the bathroom. "Get a freaking umbrella. You're pathetic."

And with that she strode towards the door and out again before Elphaba could defend herself.

She hated how she never seemed to get a word in with the blonde. It was also times like this where she also hated herself for her allergy to water. If not for her allergy, she would be outside away from her room. Away from the one place she was forced to confront the blonde ever now and then.

Elphaba began to pace around the room chastising herself for thinking such thoughts.

One she had calmed down some she went back to her desk to finish up the spell she had been working on before she had been rudely interrupted.

An hour passed and Elphaba still couldn't get the thought of the blonde out of her mind. The thoughts were so distracting that she messed up one of her easy transfiguration spells. What once was a desk lamp, was now a pineapple.

Putting her spell book down she decided to go take a walk. She knew that it was still raining and she was taking a huge risk going outside, but she could not just sit still in her room anymore. She grabbed her umbrella and headed towards the entrance of the dormitory.

Once outside, she assessed the situation, and found it to be wetter than she thought. Not only had the rain dampened everything, it also left puddles everywhere.

Elphaba let out a disappointed sign and turned to go back inside. It was that moment that Galinda's words rang in her ear, _"You're pathetic."_

"Okay Elphaba…you can do this." She said aloud as she lifted her umbrella and took the first step outside. "Just keep walking, don't let her bother you."

Fifteen minutes passed and Elphaba was starting to calm down.

"I can do this." She said aloud as she walked even further down the path towards the lake. "This is easy."

As those last words escaped her mouth she turned around to look towards Shiz. She was unaware of how far she had really gone in those fifteen minutes.

"Shit," she verbally announced as she realized she was almost half a mile away. "Guess I better go back." And with that she turned to head back towards the school.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

CHAPTER 2

Elphaba had been walking for about two minutes now. She had been staring down at her feet trying to avoid puddles when she heard a raspy male voice, "Well hello there pretty lady."

Elphaba stopped paying attention to her feet and jerked her head up towards the voice. Standing in front of her were three men towering over her. They were all around the same height of 6'2, and smelled heavily of alcohol.

"Wha...what do you want?" Elphaba managed to get out. Her fear was escalading, as two of the men started to surround her.

"Oh not much, me and my boys just want to have a little fun." The drunken man said to the now frightened green girl.

"Get away from me. I know magic. I…I'll jinx you." Elphaba said, trying to act cooler than she really was.

The ringleader of the men chuckled.

"Oh yeah? Well we mean you no harm, we just want to have a good time." He winked at her.

"_Experchio_," she chanted as one of the men reached out to grab at her.

He was thrown back onto the ground into a huge puddle. The water splashed up around him and hit Elphaba's legs causing her to scream in agony. This did not go unnoticed by the ringleader.

"Get up you fool." The man yelled at his friend who was still in the puddle.

"I'd run away if I were you." Elphaba strained to say through clenched teeth. She was in a lot of pain and her legs were beginning to blister over. She was having difficultly standing.

"Oh yeah little girl? It seems to me you are not a threat anymore with water around." The man said and got closer to Elphaba's face.

"_Primova," _Elphaba yelled at the man sending him into the same puddle his friend had been in. The water splashed onto her legs once again. This time she did not have the option of staying in a standing position. The pain gripping at her legs caused her to heal over. Her knees were the first to hit the moist ground as she screamed in pain. She was too weak to stand. The world around her was slowly fading away. Her vision became blurred. All she could feel now was pain. She felt drained, and was about to surrender when Galinda's words echoed again in her ears. _"You're pathetic."_

"I'm not pathetic!" She yelled aloud and the men all looked down at her.

Elphaba was kneeled over onto the ground with her head between her hands. She had been pulling at her raven tresses, trying to cause pain elsewhere to take away from the intense pain of her legs.

"Let's get out of here Josh!" The man who was still dry yelled. "She's psycho!"

The three men all gathered themselves and took off in the direction of the lake, leaving Elphaba on the ground crying out in pain.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER 3

It had been about five minutes since the men had left the scene of the crime. Elphaba was fighting to stay conscious as to not make her situation worse. She knew that if she stayed on the wet ground any longer than she might have more things to worry about than just pain.

"Okay you can do this." Elphaba said to herself as she tried to stand. She got one foot off the ground and was about to lift the other when a voice broke her train of thought causing her to tumble backwards and yelp as her bottom hit the hard ground again.

"Elphaba! Dear God what happened to you!"

Elphaba looked up at the sound of her name being called and noticed the blonde coming over to her side.

"Galinda….don't…please," she said through clenched teeth as she tried to stand again.

"Elphaba stop! You are hurting! Let me help you to the clinic." Galinda said sternly as she took a hold of the green girls arm to help her off of the ground.

As much as Elphaba hated the help, especially from Galinda no less, she accepted it because she was in too much pain to say no.

They walked to in infirmary in silence. Elphaba leaning on Galinda and wincing at every step she took. She hated to show her feelings in front of Galinda. She was sure that the perky blonde would make fun of her later on for sure. She could hear Galinda's voice calling her a baby. She could see her roommate's face as she told her friends about finding her roommate in such a predicament. Elphaba was sure her face would be one of joy when she told them, not one of compassion.

"_Damn it Elphaba." _She mentally scolded herself as they walked into the doors of the infirmary_. "That is not what she will do and you know it."_

"Okay Elphie, we are here now, let me go sign you in and I'll come right back. Okay?" Galinda said as she loosened her hold on the green girl and sat her down in one of the chairs.

Elphaba looked up at her roommate as she said these things and for the first time noticed the concerned look of Galinda's face. Before she could over analyze her facial expressions though, the blonde took off towards the check in counter.

"_Elphie?"_ The green girl thought. _"She has never called me anything other than Elphaba."_

Elphaba tried to make sense of what had just happened. Had that really been concern in her roommates eyes, or was it just mock concern? She was in the midst of trying to answer such a question when the blonde girl returned and sat down next to Elphaba.

"Okay so they said it would be about ten minutes because the doctor had to take care of a case of chicken pox." She said before looking down towards Elphaba's exposed thighs. They were a dark shade of red mixed with green and had blisters on them. A frown started to cross her lips.

Elphaba quietly watched as the blonde girl checked out her wounds. She felt self conscious, like she was a lab rat being watched and examined.

"Elphie, do you want to tell me what happened?" Galinda said breaking Elphaba from her train of thought.

"_Elphie? There it is again. What's going on? Why is she being so nice to me now? She has never cared about me before."_ Elphaba wanted to say but what came out was a simple, "No."

The blonde looked at Elphaba expecting some sort of explanation, but when she received none she went back to looking at the ground trying to avoid staring too much at Elphaba's wounds.

The ten minutes passed in what seemed like an hour. Neither one spoke anymore during that time period and would only occasionally glance at each other to see if either one was going to talk. Many times Galinda had opened her mouth to say something but stopped herself. She couldn't understand why Elphaba wouldn't just tell her what happened.

"Elphaba Thropp." The doctor finally called.

"Right here." She announced as she tried to stand and greet the doctor.

"Elphie, don't! You'll hurt yourself more. Let me go get you a wheelchair." Galinda insisted.

"I'm fine!" Elphaba snapped and turned back towards the blonde girl. What she has been feeling for the last ten minutes had to be released. "Why the hell are you helping me anyways. You hate my guts, remember!" she spat at Galinda and walked slowly towards the doctor. When she finally reached him she turned around and saw a hurt expression on Galinda's face.

A pang of guilt hit her and she immediately regretted snapping at the blonde. After all, it had been her that helped her from passing out on the wet ground. It has been her that half walked and half carried her to the infirmary. It had been her that had sat there with her for ten minutes waiting for the doctor.

"Galinda, look, I know you are doing this for brownie points or something from Madame Morrible….but don't. I don't need your fake pity." She said calmly and softly as she went in the door to follow the doctor.

Galinda was left standing in the waiting room looking even more confused than before.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

CHAPTER 4

Elphaba followed the doctor back into the observation room. She was experiencing a lot of pain, but managed to just make it to the bed before her legs would finally give way.

"So what exactly brings you here Miss…?"

"Elphaba." The green girl responded to the doctor.

"…Miss Elphaba." The doctor said as he looked into the green girls eyes.

"I was burned quite badly sir. Usually I just use some aloe oil, but this time it seems to be much worse. I am in quite a lot of pain right now." Elphaba said as professionally as she could.

She then proceeded to lift up her skirt a little, exposing her thighs so that the doctor could take a better look. She never liked showing herself off like this. It made her even more self-conscious about her green skin.

"Sweet Lurline my child. How did the happen?" He asked as he pulled out a magnifying glass to examine the blisters closer.

"I…I am allergic to water sir. I was walking in the rain towards my dorm room when I was splashed." Elphaba managed to say before looking away from the doctor to the floor.

"…Interesting," the doctor said as he continued to examine the blisters on the green girls legs. Once he was satisfied that none of them were infected he got up from his chair. He went over to the counter where a clipboard was at and jotted down a couple of notes before opening the drawer to pull out a medicine container.

"Here, take one of these every five hours," he said, handing over an orange bottle with pills inside. "Your pain should subside eventually, but you sustained some pretty nasty burns. It is going to take more than just those pills to make you feel better. I would suggest staying off of your feet for a week or so until your legs gain enough strength. I would also like you to rub some of this on them every hour," he handed over another bottle that had a white paste in it.

"I'm sorry sir, but I don't think I can rub this on. It is made with water." Elphaba apologized as she tried to hand the paste back to the doctor.

"Nonsense child, there is no water in this. I promise," The doctor explained, pushing the bottle back into the hands of the injured girl.

Reluctantly, she took the bottle back. "Thank you so much Doctor. I will be sure to try this out then."

Since the examination seemed to be over Elphaba proceeded to gather all the materials and supplies the doctor had handed her. She was a little sketchy about the paste still, but figured it was worth a shot. Anything to help ease her pain was welcomed.

As she finished gathering her stuff, the doctor left her alone to go grab a wheelchair for her.

Elphaba was packed up and ready to go. She was not looking forward to the next week at all. Confined in a wheelchair was the least of her concerns at the moment. She was more worried about having to stay in the room for the majority of the week. She was likely to run into the blonde a lot more now that it would be almost impossible to sneak off to the library. She was lost in thought again as the doctor came back into the room.

"Here you go Miss Elphaba. I can roll you out to the waiting room, but I'm afraid that is as far as I can go." The doctor said as he helped Elphaba take a seat in the chair. She only winced slightly as the back of her legs touched the leg rests. She was feeling a little more confident now that she had some medicine to help her through this ordeal.

"That's okay Doctor. My sister is confined to a wheelchair. I am used to pushing one of these around so I know how to work it by myself well enough." She chuckled a little, trying to lighten the mood.

"Ah all right. I wish that you would consider calling a friend to help you though." He suggested as he wheeled her out the door and towards the front.

"I really am fine by myself." Elphaba insisted. The truth was she didn't have any friends that would come down to help her.

As they rounded the corner towards the door, she peered out into the waiting room. She was surprised at what she saw through those doors. The normally bubbly blonde was pacing around with a look of anxiety on her face.

Elphaba felt a little flutter of emotion that she couldn't quite place at that moment in time. She just figured that it was annoyance. Not only did she have to deal with herself now, she had to deal with her roommate too.

As the door to the waiting room sprung open she thought to herself, _"Let the games begin."_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"Elphie! You're in a wheelchair!" Galinda headed over to where the doctor had just wheeled Elphaba out. "Doctor is she okay?" Galinda asked, concern apparent in her voice.

"Galinda, I'm fine. You didn't have to wait." Elphaba said to the blonde, more thankful that she had stayed than she let on.

"You hush." The blonde pointed her finger towards Elphaba.

That simple action made Elphaba chuckle a little. It wasn't everyday that she was able to see Galinda in a dominant role. Usually she just followed along with what everyone else did. It was hard for Elphaba to picture the blonde as a threat.

"All right, all right," Elphaba held up her hands, "I surrender."

"Good." Galinda exclaimed as she turned her attentions back towards the doctor. "Now Doc, about her condition…?"

"No need to worry Miss." The doctor took over the conversation from there. "Miss Elphaba did sustain some major burns to her legs but I believe with proper care and attention she should be fixed up in no time. As to why she has a wheelchair, I thought it best she stay off her feet for a week or so. Give her legs time to heal." He finished with a quick glance towards Elphaba who looked annoyed at the thought of going a whole week on restricted duty.

The Blonde followed the doctor's gaze over to Elphaba as sorrow filled her eyes. She looked as if she was about to tear up.

Elphaba noticed the shift in the blonde's mood and asked if it was all right that they left. The doctor agreed and within minutes the two roommates where headed back towards the dorms.

Galinda was glad that Elphaba had intervened when she did. If she had to hear anymore from the doctor about how much pain her Elphie was in then she wouldn't have been able to hold back the tears that threatened to flow.

"_Wait a minute."_ She thought to helself. _"Her Elphie? Elphie is not mine."_

"Hey Galinda?" Elphaba asked, breaking Galinda from her train of thought.

"Yeah Elphie?" Galinda asked timidly as she continued to push the wheelchair up the path to the room.

"I just wanted to thank you…for everything. I'm sorry that I snapped at you earlier." Elphaba apologized. She chose this moment to do so because she could not see into the blue eyes of her roommate. One could get lost looking into those eyes.

Galinda stopped pushing the wheelchair. Elphaba slightly panicked at the action but did not turn around. "Galinda?" Elphaba called out instead. She wasn't sure what she was waiting to hear, but she needed to hear something. Anything.

She got her response when Galinda put the parking brake on the wheels and came around to face the raven haired girl. Galinda kneeled in front of Elphaba so that they were eye level with each other. Even with her kneeling, Elphaba had a slight height advantage. She looked down into Galinda's eyes begging her to say something.

Her response finally came as Galinda reached out and grabbed Elphaba's hands in her own.

"Elphaba Thropp. Don't you dare thank me for what I did to you earlier. It's because of what I said that you went out in the rain. I never should have called you pathetic." Galinda's emotions were beginning to stir up even more the longer she looked into Elphaba's brown eyes. "You do not owe me a thank you. I owe you an apology."

Elphaba continued to stare into Galinda's eyes as she refused to accept her thank you. _"What's going on?"_ she thought.

As if Galinda had read Elphaba's mind she replied, "All year I have been treating you like crap. And for no good reason except that my friends were doing it and so I jumped on the band wagon. Seeing you today…in that situation…was really a reality check for me." Galinda could no longer hold her tears at bay. They rolled freely down her cheeks causing her blue eyes to sparkle even more.

"Elphaba, I could have lost you today. And as much as you think I hate you, I really don't. I'm sorry Elphie. Oh sweet Oz I am so sorry!" She continued to cry until she felt Elphaba tighten her grip on Galinda's hands. At that contact she looked up into Elphie's eyes.

"Galinda, I had no idea you cared that much. I'm sorry that I haven't been the friendliest to you either. It's just hard for me to trust most people."

Elphaba continued to stare into Galinda's eyes, unable to come up with anything more to say.

After what seemed like an eternity of staring into each others eyes, Galinda finally got up and brushed herself off.

"Come on Miss Elphaba, the sooner we get back the sooner you can rest and Oz knows you need it."

Before Elphaba could protest Galinda put a finger over the green girls mouth.

"Now hush," Galinda looked sternly into Elphaba's eyes. "Doctors orders."

And with that, the two of them were back on their journey up to their room.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

It took the girls ten minutes and a few cuss words to finally arrive back in their dorm at Crage Hall.

"Who the hell makes a pathway out of cobblestones anyways?" Galinda angrily said as she pushed Elphaba into their shared room.

The green girl couldn't help but laugh at this comment. Since when had Galinda cared about how practical something was rather than how pretty.

"Oh Miss Galinda you never seem to stop amusing me." Elphaba replied to the blonde's look of confusion. "Now if you don't mind, I think I can take it from here." And with that she took the wheels into her own possession and rolled over to where her desk was.

Galinda hung back in the door. She was battling whether or not to ask Elphaba what really happened. She agreed on asking now while it was fresh on her mind might bring the most truthful answer.

"Hey Elphie?" Galinda walked over to where Elphaba was now sitting at her desk thumbing through her papers.

"Mmm hum?" Elphaba mumbled without looking up.

"What really happened out there?" The blonde looked towards Elphaba as if to gauge any sort of reaction from her. She was disappointed when Elphaba's face showed no emotion. She continued, "I mean, I know what happened after I came and helped you. But before that…how did you end up on the ground?"

"I tripped." Was all Elphaba could say before she went back to shuffling through papers. She didn't dare attempt to look at Galinda when she said she had tripped. She knew that if she did then there would be no way she could lie to her.

Galinda didn't seem too convinced with Elphaba's answer and so she tried another tactic. "Oh. Hey Elphie?" She asked. When she got another grunt from Elphaba that she was still listening she continued. "Well I was just wondering…what exactly did you trip over?"

This question caught Elphaba off guard. She wasn't exactly sure how to respond. She was horrible at lying and could feel Galinda's piercing blue eyes staring at her. The thought of this made her real uncomfortable and it started to show on her face. "There was a branch on the ground and I guess I just didn't see it."

"Elphie…there were no branches in the area. Trust me. I checked around before we left to see if you had left anything." Galinda replied.

"_Oh shit." _Elphaba thought, but what really came out was, "I guess you didn't look hard enough then."

Galinda just continued to stare at the green girl. Whatever had happened to her earlier had frightened her. She could see it in her eyes. She knew that Elphaba had her reasons for lying to her, but she also knew that she deserved to know the truth. "Elphie, look at me." She prodded.

When no response came from the green girl she reached out and lifting her chin up so dark eyes met light. "Look Elphie, I don't want to accuse you of lying. Are you sure that you just tripped and fell? Nothing else? If it was something else then I'd like to know. I want to help to try and keep you safe from whatever or whoever hurt you."

With that said she just continued to stare into Elphaba's eyes willing her to speak.

Elphaba stared into the blue eyes in front of her and tried to comprehend what was just said. _"She wants to protect me?"_ she thought. All the stress of the day was getting to Elphaba so she was sure she must have heard that wrong. When it seems like her inner questions wouldn't stop she finally asked Galinda if she said what she thought she had.

"You want to help me?" Elphaba timidly asked the blonde.

"Of course I do." Came her response.

Elphaba couldn't take looking into her eyes any longer. She looked down and started fiddling with her fingers. _"Should I just tell her the truth?"_ she wondered.

Galinda noticed the shift in Elphaba's attitude and started to back down. She went to turn and leave Elphaba to her thoughts when she heard her finally speak.

"Don't go Galinda. Please." There was almost a pleading quality in Elphaba's voice. "I don't want to be alone right now."

Galinda immediately regretted backing down from the green girl and ran back over to her side.

"I'm not going anywhere." She smiled down at the girl in the wheelchair

Elphaba decided it was now or never if she were actually going to tell Galinda what really happened. She shifted a little in her seat. It was becoming more and more uncomfortable every moment she sat in it.

"I didn't trip." She said barely above a whisper. The blonde wouldn't have been able to hear it had her ears not been trained on Elphaba.

"Go on." Galinda nodded encouragingly and took Elphaba's hands in her own.

It was the second time the Galinda had held Elphaba's hands that day. It made her feel safe and gave her the push she needed.

"I was walking around campus trying to clear my head." Galinda frowned at this and this did not go unnoticed by Elphaba.

"Hey I was walking around on my own account. Not because you forced me Glin." She reassured the blonde although it wasn't quite true. She was walking around because Galinda made her feel horrible that morning. She shook this thought off and continued.

"So I was walking and these guys came up to me. Said they wanted to have a good time." It was becoming harder for the green girl to go on. "One of them lunged at me and so I threw him off his feet with magic."

Elphaba was so mesmorized in her own thoughts she didn't see Galinda clasp a hand around her mouth and gasp.

"Then when he fell he hit a puddle and it splashed me." Elphaba pointed to the wounds on her legs as if to show the evidence.

Galinda followed her hand down and saw the wounds. They were quickly becoming scars.

"Long story short, I kicked their asses and they went crying back to mommy." Elphaba tried to lighten the mood. She flashed the blonde one of her smiles that until now had hardly ever been seen.

Galinda was finally able to speak. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that Elphie. I'm glad you handled yourself pretty well though." She smiled back at Elphaba. "And if they ever come around again tell them they have you to look forward to and me."

Elphaba couldn't help but laugh out loud at this comment.

"You? What are you going to do to them? Throw glitter in their eyes to blind them while we get away?" Elphaba was now heeled over laughing so hard at the vision that came to her mind.

Galinda couldn't help suppress a laugh either.

"Well actually Miss Elphaba, I would first call them pansies….and _then _throw glitter in their eyes. So ha!" She finished sticking her tongue out at Elphaba as if to tease her.

"Wow you really are full of something Glin." Elphaba smiled at the girl.

"Glin? Where on earth did you come up with that one?" Galinda responded with a playful attitude.

"Oh come on as if Elphie is any better Miss Queen of Nicknames." Elphaba played along.

"Well the Queen of Nicknames thinks that it is a perfectly acceptable one." Galinda responded back.

"Alright, alright. Well then in the spirit of nicknames I shall no longer be Elphaba to you. Just plain Elphie." Elphaba said.

"And to you, I shall be Galinda." The blonde responded back with a serious face on.

"Wait, why do I always get the short end of the stick?" Elphaba tried to say with just as serious of a face.

"Because you are always stuck with short." At this comment Elphaba looked thouroughly confused.

"Say what?" The green girl asked with raised eyebrows.

"I said _Elphie," _she said the green girls name as if to draw it out as long as possible, "that you are always stuck with short. Case in point…you get me as a roomie." She flashed Elphie another one of her grins.

Elphaba finally caught on and decided to play along.

"Wait you're short? Alert the media!" Elphaba's eyes widened as she tried to put on her best Galinda like performance.

Galinda didn't see this as too funny and decided to mock Elphaba in return.

"Well I don't see any point in alerting anyone. It is nothing of importance. I am going to the library to study!" Galinda said and she went to get up. Something had restricted her movement however.

It was then that she looked down to see what was stopping her. She looked upon her creamy skin mixed with green. She had forgotten she had took Elphaba's hand a long time ago.

Seeing Galinda look down towards something Elphaba looked down too. She too saw their hands intertwined with one another.

"_How could they have forgotten they had been holding hands?"_ She thought.

At that moment they both looked into each others eyes. They had still yet to let go of one another's hands. They just started into each others eyes for what seemed an eternity. Blue eyes meeting brown.

It was Galinda who pulled away first. Elphaba was quick to follow and placed her now free hand into her other unoccupied hand. She then started the fiddle with her fingers again.

Galinda noticed this small nervous habit of Elphaba's and smiled inwardly, _"I made her nervous." _She thought.

"Hey Glin?" Elphaba said to the blonde bringing her out of her thoughts.

"Yeah Elphie?" Galinda was kind of nervous at what Elphaba might say. What if she asked for answers that the blonde didn't have? What if she said that everything that happened earlier was a mistake? What if she pulled away and started being a loner again?

Before Galinda could become too overly concerned with what-if's Elphaba continued.

"I hate to ask since you have already done so much for me…but could you go down to the café and get us dinner? I don't really want to go out just yet and-"

"Of course Elphie." Galinda interrupted her. "I'll just go down and get us something now. Are you sure you will be okay while I'm gone?"

Elphaba looked up at Galinda who's face was written with concern. The truth was that Elphaba was a little afraid to be alone still but the look on Galinda's face made her feel protected.

"I think I can manage." She flashed Galinda one of her best smiles.

Galinda was taken off guard by such a beautiful smile. She had never truly appreciated the green girls looks until now. She hadn't actually looked at her at all before today.

"You have a beautiful smile Elphie. You should show it more often." Galinda left her roommate looking slightly embarrassed before closing the door and heading towards the café.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Galinda walked towards the café with a smug expression on her face. So many things had changed since yesterday. She actually considered Elphaba to be one of her friends now. If someone had time traveled back in time and told her this would happen, she would never have believed them. Not in a million years would she ever think about becoming friends with such an odd character. Elphaba was different though. She was the first person to ever truly challenge Galinda. When others fawned over the blonde for her good looks, Elphaba didn't seem to notice. When others only cared about popularity and who was going out with whom, Elphaba didn't seem to care. All she cared for was knowledge.

Galinda continued to think of how the green girl was so different than her when she stumbled into someone almost knocking them down.

"Woah there Galinda." A tall boy with sandy blonde hair said. "Where's the fire?"

"Oh I'm sorry Fiyero. I must have been daydreaming." Galinda blushed.

"It's alright." He shook himself off after the collision. "So what were you daydreaming about?"

Galinda wasn't really comfortable with the situation and so she replied, "Oh nothing really. Just spacing."

It was a lie however. Her thoughts had been on the green girl.

"Oh all right." Fiyero seemed unconvinced. "So are you headed to the café?"

Galinda didn't want to lie but she also didn't want his company which she knew he would offer if she said yes. She had little time to form a response and so she went with the truth.

"As a matter of fact I am." She saw the look of excitement on his face when she said this. So she quickly tried to brush him off as politely as she could. "But I will not be staying long. I just have to pick up some food for me and Miss Elphaba."

She hoped this would deter him from trying to accompany her.

"The artichoke?" he chuckled. "Why would you want to get food for her?"

Galinda was taken back at this statement. Sure she knew her friends did not like Elphaba but she didn't know Fiyero thought this way too.

"I don't appreciate that too much Fiyero." She replied. "I am just trying to help a friend out that's all. Not that it's any of your business."

With that said she turned away from him and continued to the café. Fiyero was left with a confused expression on his face. _"Had she just called Elphaba her friend? Nah…she couldn't have."_ He thought. Before he could ask Galinda to clarify her response she had disappeared down another corridor towards the café.

"_What nerve."_ Galinda steamed. _"I mean I understand that not everyone likes Elphie…but him? I would have never thought in a million years."_

Galinda continued towards the café and finally arrived just before they were closing.

Once she had picked up some soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, and a pitcher of juice, she headed back in the direction of the room.

XXX

Elphaba had been left in the room while Galinda went down to get something for them to both eat. Truth be told Elphaba was not really all too hungry. The events from before had stirred up her stomach enough that the thought of food made her nauseous. She just needed time to think to herself and so she sent Galinda on a little errand.

"Okay Elphie get a hold of yourself." She verbally chastised herself.

Elphaba had been feeling a little off ever since she had seen Galinda waiting for her in the infirmary.

"She really is trying to help you." She tried to convince herself.

Elphaba couldn't help go over the events of the day in her mind. When she woke up it had seemed like such a normal day. The birds were chirping, it was a little cloudy outside, and her roommate had been hogging the bathroom like always.

She smiled a little bit as the thought of her roommate popped into her mind.

Galinda had always hogged the bathroom in the mornings. She would spend hours upon hours getting ready for the day. On this particular morning, she looked even more radiant.

Elphaba's concerns were put on hold for a little while as she envisioned how Galinda had looked earlier.

Galinda had put on a pink sundress: casual, but comfortable. The hem was right about her knees. When she leaned over the back of the dress rose ever so slightly revealing more of the blonde girls thighs. She continued to envision the way Galinda had done her hair. It was curled like it normally was, but this morning it seemed to have extra bounce to it.

Elphaba interrupted her thoughts of the blonde when confussion once again entered her mind. _"Why am I thinking about these things?"_ she thought.

Elphaba was even more confused when she thought back to the predicament the two had found themselves in earlier.

"_That hand holding really screwed with my brain." _She thought.

Elphaba was tired of over analyzing everything. It seemed like that was all she had done for the past fifteen minutes while Galinda was away. She found herself wishing Galinda would hurry back to save her from her thoughts.

As if on command the door opened to reveal the blonde carrying in a large tray with an assortment of foods.

They both smiled upon seeing each other.

Galinda walked over to her desk and put down the tray.

"I hope you're hungry Elphie because I think after I got through with the café they had nothing left." Galinda poured Elphaba a glass of juice and handed it to her.

"Thanks a lot Glin, I really do owe you one." Elphaba gladly accepted the juice and downed it. She held the glass back out for Galinda to refill it.

"Don't mention it. What are friends for." She smiled back at Elphaba as she refilled the glass.

Elphaba hungrily accepted the food that was offered to her. She was still feeling a little sick, but didn't want to be rude to Galinda. She had gone through all of that trouble for her.

"So what took you so long?" Elphaba teased Galinda.

"I ran into Fiyero." Galinda replied with a look of disgust. This did not go unnoticed by Elphaba.

"Something the matter with Fiyero? I thought you two were hitting it off quite nicely." Elphaba tried to sound as if she cared about how Galinda and Fiyero's relationship really was.

"Nothing is the matter really. He was just being an ass. And we were hitting it off until tonight." Galinda took some of her soup and continued. "I don't know what's going on with us." She looked up and met the eyes of the girl in front of her.

Elphaba stared into Galinda's eyes trying to come up with some comforting words for the blonde. She had never been good at offering comfort to anyone. The only person she had ever cared for was Nessa and that was out of necessity.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Do you want to talk about it." Elphaba put down her spoon and signaled that she was finished with her meal.

Galinda took one last bite of her sandwich and followed suit. Neither one of them ate very much.

"Actually I would love to…but can we do it somewhere else?" Galinda asked. "I'm kind of getting stir crazy here."

Elphaba looked down at what she was wearing and realized she looked like a mess. Mud still covered her clothes and she smelled like a pigsty.

"Can I bath and change first? Then you can roll me around and talk my ear off." She smiled at Galinda.

Galinda had forgotten that Elphaba was still in her torn clothes. She suddenly felt a little embarrassed that she had forgotten.

"Certainly Elphie." She got up and started gathering the dirty plates to go take to the trash. "But don't be too long please."

"I won't." Elphaba rolled into the bathroom and shut the door.

Galinda was left staring at the door. She did not really know what she was going to talk about with Elphaba. She wasn't about to tell her friend that things were not good between her and Fiyero because of Elphaba. That would just make the green girl feel bad. The last thing she wanted was for Elphaba to feel bad.

"_Guess I'll come up with something."_ She thought as she tried to straighten up their room.

XXX

It was nearly 45 minutes before Elphaba came out of the bathroom.

"It's about time Elphie." Galinda tapped her foot and pointed to the clock on the wall.

"Sorry. It takes longer to get mud off than you might think." She chuckled. "I'm ready and in your willing hands now so lead the way."

Galinda went over to get Elphaba's wheelchair and realized that Elphaba smelled like mangos.

"Mmm…you smell good Elphie." She leaned down closer to Elphaba to get a better wiff.

Elphaba turned a darker shade of green as Galinda hovered over her. The blonde was still about a foot away but the nearness still made Elphaba's breath hitch in her throat.

"_What is this effect she is having on me?"_ she questioned herself.

"Thanks." She replied sheepishly. "It's my mango oil that I use."

Galinda looked into the eyes of the girl in front of her. Elphaba stared right back into the icy blue eyes that were Galinda's. A smile started to appear on Galinda's face. She reached out and touched the cheek of the woman in front of her. Elphaba tensed at this touch and quickly averted her eyes from the blonde.

Galinda pulled her hand back down and started to resume her position behind Elphaba so that she could push her.

"Well I like it. You should use it more often." She said to the green girl as she opened the door.

Elphaba blushed again but this time it went unnoticed since Galinda was behind her. She smiled and made a mental note to buy more mango oil the next time she was out.

Once they reached the lift Galinda pressed the button to go down. While they were waiting she came back in front of Elphaba.

"Still on the subject of mango oil…." Elphaba arched an eyebrow as Galinda continued. "It makes your skin really soft." She winked at Elphaba just as the door to the lift was opening. Elphaba's eyes widened and she was almost positive her jaw had hit the floor.

"_Had she just said my skin was soft?" _Elphaba couldn't contain her excitement. _"Oh sweet Oz."_

"Where to Misses?" The lift operator asked interrupting the private moment between the two girls.

Galinda turned towards the man, "First floor please."

She went back around Elphaba and pushed her wheelchair into the lift. She was glad that Elphaba was in front of her and couldn't see her blushing as she settled them both into the elevator.

"_Did I really just say that out loud?"_ she thought in disbelief.

Before the two of them could over analyze anything the lift came to a stop and the man opened the doors for the two of them to get off.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

It was much prettier outside now that the rain had stopped and the sky had cleared up. Candle torches all around campus illuminated the sky. Shiz really did look beautiful at night. It was on nights like this that made everything worthwhile. The stars shone brightly up above and reflected in Elphaba's dark brown eyes. So much so that when Galinda looked into them she smiled at the thought that Elphie's eyes had freckles on them.

They had had a nice walk around the campus and currently resided on a bench just outside the gate. Elphaba was still in her wheelchair and stationed right next to said bench.

"Hey Elphie?" Galinda finally broke the comfortable silence. The green girl broke her gaze from the heavens above and looked at Galinda.

"Yeah?" Elphaba asked. Galinda shuffled her feet on the ground causing her shoes to become muddy.

"About earlier…" she glanced around making sure no one was hidden behind a bush or anything, "I meant what I said." She finished what she was saying and let out a breath of air she was not aware she had been holding.

Elphaba was confused at first. She was not exactly sure which incident Galinda had been referring to. From the look of confusion the green girl gave Galinda she continued to elaborate more.

"About you being beautiful when you smile." Galinda gave Elphie one of her best smiles. The green girl seemed to shift uncomfortably in her seat. She didn't know what to say in response to that. No one had ever called her beautiful before. It was almost too much for her to handle. She knew that she couldn't just leave Galinda sitting there with nothing being said to her in return. Problem was that Elphie had no idea what to say. The developments over the past twenty-four hours had been confusing enough. She had gone from practically being ignored, to despised, to cared for, to befriended, to…?

That's when it hit Elphaba. _"To what exactly?"_ she wondered. Sure Galinda had said they were friends now but Elphaba was still having a hard time believing it. So many people had lied to her throughout her life that she had little confidence in anyone anymore. She did not know love nor trust.

"Um…Elphie?" Galinda snapped her fingers in front of Elphaba breaking her from her trance. Elphaba snapped her eyes back into reality and looked towards the blonde.

She had still yet to respond to what Galinda had told her and now the Blonde was getting a little antsy. _"What if I freaked her out? What if I went too far? Stupid Galinda! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!"_ she verbally abused herself. It was then that Elphaba finally spoke out.

"Can I ask you something Glin?" Elphaba found her voice. This was not the response Galinda had hoped for. She had hoped for anything but this. A simple thank you would even be sufficient. But no: the green girl was incapable of just accepting a compliment. She had to make it some big deal.

Galinda was too scared to say anything so she just nodded. _"Elphaba looks nervous."_ She thought to herself.

"This might not be the best time to bring this up since we are having such a good time but-" Elphaba was about to continue when Galinda interrupted her.

"No it's fine Elphie. Go on." The blonde urged her to say what was really on her mind.

"Alright. Well I was just curious…why until today have you been so harsh with me?" The green girl looked into blue eyes for answers.

Galinda had not expected this and it felt as if someone had hit her in the stomach with a baseball bat. Of all the questions she could have asked she picked this one. Galinda had to think about this one for a moment before she felt like she could offer Elphaba a valid answer.

"Look Elphie, I am ashamed of how I treated you in the past. I already told you that earlier so I am not going to go into depth about that with you again. As for the reasons well I really haven't got any good ones." Elphaba looked a little hurt and so Galinda continued, trying to salvage anything that may have been misinterpreted.

"Truth be told Elphie, I never actually have hated you or despised you in any way. Yes, we did not get along at all, but I never hated you. Please understand that." Elphaba shook her head as if she understood what Galinda was saying. As the blonde was about to continue validating her reasons Elphaba interjected with another question.

"Well if you didn't really hate me then how come you called me all those hurtful names?" Galinda was the one to look sad now. She was not aware that she had hurt Elphaba this badly until she saw the look in the green girls eyes as she thought about the past.

"I don't know." Galinda replied frusterated. "I was trying to fit in here at Shiz. I figured the way to do that was to get in with the popular crowd. Do as they do, act as they act. Even if that meant being rude to the one girl that had never been rude to me."

"Oh." Elphaba looked down into her lap. She was unable to look back into Galinda's eyes. She had figured that she would get some elaborate excuse from the blonde but in reality she received the truth. The truth wasn't what she expected though. She knew that Galinda was as social as could be and popularity was everything, but to what expense? If she had willingly said those things to hurt Elphaba then what make her think she wouldn't do it again.

"How come I know you won't do that again? How come I know that once you see your friends you won't talk bad about me?" Elphaba timidly asked the blonde. Galinda felt like she had been to hell and back and was now on a second trip.

"You don't. You just have to trust that I won't do that again. And I promise from this day forth I will never call you anymore nasty or hateful things." Galinda apologized to her roommate.

"How do I know that I can trust you?" Elphaba countered. Galinda decided now was the perfect time to bring up what happened between her and Fiyero in the hallway.

"Because I have already stood up for you and jeopardized my whole popularity." Galinda gave a truthful answer.

She then proceeded to tell Elphaba everything that had transpired between Galinda and Fiyero in the hallway on the way to the café. Once she had recounted every last detail she looked up at Elphaba to gauge a response. She was met with brown eyes that had a single tear falling from the left one.

Galinda reached out a finger and wiped the tear off of her face.

"You'll burn yourself Miss Elphaba." Galinda stared into Elphaba's intense eyes. Elphaba felt Galinda brush her face once again and the sting she should have felt from the tear was no longer a sting. It was filled with a different sort of emotion. She wasn't hurt at all, far from it in fact. She was not sure what this new emotion was but she was positive that she wanted it to last so she reached up and grabbed the blonde girls hand keeping it in position on her cheek.

Galinda immediately melted at the contact and stilled her hand.

"Thank you." Elphaba mouthed. No words actually came out but the action did not lose any meaning. A strange feeling came over the two of them at that moment. They both felt as if they were having a conversation with their eyes. Words did not matter anymore.

They continued to stare at each other for a few moments more and then finally broke eye contact. Elphaba let go of Galinda's hand and the blonde unwillingly reclaimed it.

"_Woah what the hell was that feeling just now?"_ the blonde thought as she took back her hand. _"Why do I still wish that she had not let go of my hand?"_

At the same time Galinda was having her confusing thoughts Elphaba was suffering from her own. _"Well that was surely different. How come I didn't want to let go of her hand? It's that damn hand again! Always with the hand."_

The two continued to just enjoy each others company for the next five or ten minutes before heading back up to their room.

XXX

The week went by pretty uneventful for the two women. Their new friendship was not kept a secret from Shiz. Even if they had wanted to, Fiyero made sure to gossip and tell the whole school what Galinda had said to him in the hallway. It was during one of these over exaggerated retelling of the events that Galinda became thoroughly pissed. She had been sitting at a table in the cafeteria with Elphaba eating dinner. Fiyero was close by and within earshot of the blonde.

"Oh come on!" Galinda huffed. Elphaba noticing that Galinda ha said something looked up from the book she had been reading.

"Say something Glin?" She asked the blonde. Galinda wasted no time in telling Elphaba what she had overheard.

"I did not tell him that I only preferred the company of other women now." Galinda steamed. She had listened to Fiyero tell counteless false stories of how Galinda refused to like him because in fact she 'wasn't that way'. That she only defended her roommate because she had a crush on her. He also told everyone that she had refused popularity for that artichoke. Everyone around him laughed and looked in the direction of Galinda and Elphaba's table.

Elphaba noticed the laughter and looked over at Fiyero's table. She shot him an angry glare and he seemed to wince. Elphaba then turned her attention back to the blonde girl in front of her.

"I know you never told him any of those things Galinda. Don't let him get to you." Elphaba tried to persuade the blonde. "He is just jealous that you are friends with an amazingly talented, beautiful, exotic, and green woman." Elphaba sarcastically laughed. She didn't really believe anything she had just said, except for the green part. She was just trying to make Galinda smile.

It succeeded. Galinda looked adoringly at Elphaba and giggled.

"Damn right he's jealous!" she slammed her glass down with more force than she intended causing the students around to look at their table. Elphaba couldn't contain a laugh as she watched Galinda's drink splash all over her hands.

"Here let me help you with that." Elphaba offered up her napkin and started wiping up the mess Galinda had made.

"Don't hurt yourself Elphie." Galinda sounded concerned. Elphaba stopped wiping up the mess and looked at the blonde.

"Don't worry your pretty little head off. I am being very careful. Plus I don't want to get injured anymore. I get out of this wheelchair tomorrow and I am not adding anymore injuries to my body." Elphaba conceded as she pointed to the wheelchair to indicate she was already in enough of a bind without wanting to injure herself anymore.

Galinda was trying to comprehend what Elphaba was saying but got stuck when Elphaba had called her pretty. _"Well not exactly."_ She tried to correct herself but it didn't work. _"Elphie called you pretty! Elphie called you pretty!"_ she repeated over and over in her head while Elphie finished saying whatever it was she was saying. Noticing Galinda had stopped paying attention Elphaba sighed.

"_What am I doing?"_ she thought. _"I can't even keep her attention. What makes me think she will ever notice me? I mean Fiyero did say she preferred the company of other women…" _Elphaba then realized what she had just thought. _"Wait. What? Why does it matter if she realizes me or not? And that was just a stupid rumor. Of course she likes men. She's Galinda for Oz sake. Perfect, popular, beautiful, smart, sexy, voluptuous, curvy, enticing Galinda. Oh sweet Oz help me now!"_

Galinda had returned back to reality and had now noticed Elphaba in a far off place. She laughed at the roll reversal and decided it was time for a change in scenery.

"Hey Elphie." She poked Elphaba until the green girl's trance was over and she stared back at the blonde. "I have an idea."


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** **Thanks to everyone who has been reviewing. I am trying to write in this story as often as I can. It's my biggest pet peeve when people start stories and never update them. Hopefully I don't turn into one of those people. haha. Anyhow...thanks for reading this! Oh and also in this chapter I had to make Galinda older than Elphaba. Which I don't think is correct but oh well. Hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 9**

"I don't think this was such a good idea." The green girl laughed. She tried to keep her voice as serious as she could but was failing miserably.

"Aww c'mon Elphie! I promise I won't laugh!" Galinda pleaded to the green girl.

After the two had left the cafeteria Galinda had taken them to one of her favorite stores off campus. It was a small boutique that housed many dresses and jewelry. It was the perfect store for Galinda. Elphaba, however, clashed with everything in sight. It took much begging and a few pouts from the blonde for Elphaba to finally agree to try something on.

"I look ridiculous Galinda." Elphaba tried to convince the blonde that this was a useless endeavor. Galinda wouldn't hear of it though.

"I will give you five more seconds and if you don't come out of that dressing room then I am coming in after you." Galinda sounded a bit agitated but the green girl could care less. She was more worried about what Galinda would say when she saw Elphaba.

"Five…four…three….two…" Galinda stamped her foot on the ground with every number that came from her mouth. She was about to say the number one when Elphaba finally emerged from the room. Galinda's jaw dropped when she saw the green girl in front of her. She was left speechless.

"Um…I take it that you don't like it then." Elphaba shifted uncomfortably. She had gotten out of her wheelchair so that she could model the dress properly for the blonde. Galinda finally found her voice.

"Elphie…you're gorgeous." The blonde still seemed unconvinced that the girl standing before her was in fact her roommate. She took in the sight of the green girl and stored a mental picture in her mind. Elphaba looked perfect at that moment. She was dressed in a black dress that went down to her ankles. The dress was accented with pink stripes down the skirt that eventually all converged where the bust of the dress was.

Elphaba had been waiting for a laugh from the blonde telling her that she looked ridiculous but what she received was unexpected. _"Did she just call me gorgeous? Me? Maybe I heard wrong."_ She thought.

Galinda was still in aw of how the girl in front of her had transformed from something undesirable to something really desirable. She felt the butterflies that had lately been in her stomach return. She thought they had brought reinforcements this time that went a little lower than her stomach. _"What is this feeling?"_ she thought.

"Um earth to Galinda." Elphaba was now standing in front of the blonde snapping her fingers to get her attention. Galinda still seemed a little dazed and had a slight smirk on her face. Elphaba tried this action again only this time after she snapped her fingers she brought her hands down to the shoulders of the blonde in front of her. The blonde immediately looked up at Elphaba when she felt her touch her shoulders. How she had longed for this touch. Just the mere closeness of Elphaba was getting too much for her to handle. She had to figure out what was going on with her and she had to figure it out fast.

"Pink goes good with green." The blonde finally pointed out. Elphaba's hands lingered on the petite blonde's figure. A smile encompassed both of their faces.

Elphaba was aware in that moment that friends don't stand there and just hold each other like Galinda and her had been doing. She was unwilling to move from her spot though. Her mind kept telling her to move but her body was unwilling. She just grasped onto Galinda's shoulders a little tighter as if she were using her as some sort of support.

Galinda felt this sudden change in pressure and left out an audible sigh. She looked down towards the hands that held onto her and then back up to the green girl. Their eyes met for what seemed like forever before Galinda finally broke contact. She didn't back away from Elphaba though. She just moved her eyes to look upon the green lips of the girl in front of her. How she had longed to taste those lips for about a week now. She was curious to whether or not they were as soft as her skin was.

Elphaba noticed Galinda looking at her lips and gulped. This was it. This was the moment she had been waiting for. She looked upon the blonde girls lips in front of her and began to bite her bottom lip as if in anticipation.

Galinda noticed Elphaba biting her bottom lip and smilied. _"That's so cute."_ She thought. She broke her eyes off of Elphaba's lips and met the brown eyes in front of her once again. She asked permission with her eyes and when it seemed like Elphaba was okay with the whole situation she leaned forward ever so slightly.

Elphaba was aware of what was going to happen the second Galinda's eyes met hers again. She wanted this contact. No, she needed it. The tension over the past week had been building up between the two. She needed release and she knew that Galinda was the only one who could provide her with such. She gave her approval to the blonde by way of eye contact. That's when she saw the blonde close her eyes and lean forward towards her. Elphaba panicked in that moment and immediately let go of Galinda's shoulders. She turned her head so that Galinda's kiss was not met with lips but with the cheek of the green girl in front of her.

Galinda immediately opened her eyes confused as to why there was a cheek in front of her instead of lips. She looked up towards Elphaba who had her eyes focused on the floor. Elphaba was unwilling to meet the gaze of the blonde. She was afraid of what she might see in those eyes. Hurt, confusion, regret, sadness, any of those emotions would be too hard for her to bear.

Galinda's smile vanished as she watched the green girl in front of her deliberately avoid her gaze. Her hurt was then replaced with anger at the green girl.

"_Why the hell did she lead me on like that?"_ she fumed to herself. _"She looked like she wanted to kiss me if I'm not mistaken." _Galinda continued to think of hurtful comments towards the event of which took place when Elphaba interrupted her.

"I have to go." She flushed and headed back towards the dressing room to get changed back into her normal clothes. The whole way back to the dressing room she cursed herself under her breath. _"Stupid, stupid, stupid Elphaba!"_

Galinda watched as the green girl retreated back into the safety of the dressing room. She was hurt and confused. Elphaba had shown Galinda all the signs that she liked her. She even looked like she wanted to kiss the blonde too. Galinda was not sure what would happen between the two of them now. She didn't want things to become awkward but she knew that that was what was bound to happen. She had many past experiences where guys had hit on her and she rejected them. Things would later become awkward between the two because of hurt egos and what not.

Elphaba was changed back into her normal clothes and was sitting in her wheelchair in the dressing room. She was not about to go back out yet. She had to collect her thoughts, had to think through what had jut happened between her roommate and her.

"_Okay think Elphaba."_ She commanded herself to come up with some logical answer. _"You have bene having these feelings for a couple of days now. This shouldn't surprise you. You have already figured out that you like Galinda...so why did I not kiss her?" _Elphaba's head was now in her hands as she tried to work through her reluctance to kiss the blonde.

Galinda was still out in the waiting area having the same kind of thoughts. _"Okay Galinda get a hold of yourself. Just because she refused to kiss you does not mean that there is nothing there. Maybe she was just frightened…or maybe she doesn't like me." _Her level headed debate went towards the deep end as the blonde continued to go over reasons why the green girl might not like her.

"_I was mean to her all those months. I shouldn't have thought that just because we are friends now that she can forgive me totally. She doesn't like women probably. That's it. She just likes men."_ Galinda tried to work through this. It was getting her nowhere. She seemed worse off than she was before she started over analyzing everything. She needed to make a decision. She knew that she had two choices. Either confront the green girl and ask her exactly why she denied her or she could ignore the whole situation and act like it never happened. Her and Elphaba could then go back to being roommates and nothing more. She didn't know if she would be able to stand just being roommates with Elphaba. She needed something more.

The blonde finally decided on her decision and got up from her chair. She would go interrogate Elphaba until she received a valid reason.

Elphaba was still lost in her thoughts when she heard a knock sound outside of her door.

"_Oh shit! I'm not ready yet!"_ Elphaba thought, but what came out was, "Come in."

The blonde cautiously entered the dressing room and made her way to sit on the little chair inside.

"Wow. They really don't make these things wheelchair accessible now do they?" she tried to lighten the mood at how small the room was. It didn't work however as all she received from Elphaba was a shrug.

Galinda finally reached the chair and sat down in front of Elphaba. A task that seemed much easier than it actually was. Elphaba was the first to break the silence.

"I'm sorry about out there Galinda." She nodded towards the door. She was still unable to move her head up from looking down in her lap. "I guess you would like an explanation I assume."

Galinda was surprised at how Elphaba had so easily offered up an explanation without having to beg for it.

"I would, yes." Galinda nodded. Elphaba looked up into Galinda's eyes. It was then that Galinda realized why Elphaba had not looked her in the face until now. Elphaba's face had tear marks where she had obviously been crying. Her eyes were still watery and bloodshot.

"Oh sweetie," Galinda grabbed her sleeve and wiped the tears that lingered in Elphaba's eyes. "Red definitely does not go good with green." Elphaba smiled at this and could not help laugh a little. Only Galinda would think about color coordination at a time like this.

Galinda was about to remove her hand from Elphaba's face when Elphaba grabbed it and brought it down to her lap.

"_She's holding your hand….maybe that's a good sign."_ Galinda thought. She then proceeded to give a little squeeze to the proffered hand as a means to encourage the green girl to continue.

"Glin I don't know what came over me out there." Elphaba said truthfully. She was still unsure of the reasons behind why she looked away. Seeing the unsatisfied gleam in Galinda's eyes she continued.

"I'm going to be honest with you Galinda. I like you. I like you as a friend, I like you as a best friend, and I'm scared to think that I like you as more than that even. I have never had such strong feelings for anyone. I just want you to know that even though I didn't really show it out there, I did want to kiss you. I really did." Elphaba continued to look into Galinda's eyes for what she hoped was a valid answer.

Galinda felt as if all of Oz had been lifted off of her shoulders. _"She does like me! I wasn't wrong! Yay!"_ she celebrated in her head. When she was through with celebrations some more questions arose.

"Elphie…if you do like me then why did you turn away?" Galinda needed an answer.

"I don't know that either." Elphaba was beginning to become more and more frusterated with herself. If she liked someone then how come she couldn't just show them? Why did she have to make it all complicated?

Galinda let go of Elphaba's hand and brought it up to the green girls face. She cupped her cheek and when she felt Elphaba lean into her hand she made a bold move that would change both of their lives forever. She leaned forward and whispered something into Elphaba's ear.

"Don't second guess yourself Elphie. If you want something, then you take it." She whispered and then she kisses the cheek next to the ear she had whispered in. She brought her head back to retreat when she felt two hands grasp the back of her neck. She was being pulled forwards towards her roommate. Her breathing stopped as she anticipated what was to happen next.

Green lips met pink in a passionate kiss. The kiss started slowly and soft but gradually became faster and more urgent. Galinda tugged at Elphaba's raven hair and Elphaba continued to move her hands up and down Galinda's back. The two were lost in their own world. Galinda parted her lips slightly to allow Elphaba's tongue to explore freely. Galinda responded with a happy sigh when Elphie did just that.

The two continued to kiss until breathing became an issue. They broke apart and lingered for a little while. Elphaba rested her head against Galinda's forehead and Galinda did the same.

"When I said take what you want, you defiantly did not dissapoint." Galinda smiled as her eyes opened to meet brown ones looking back at her. Elphaba smiled and reached up a hand to stroke the blonde's cheek.

"Well I was always taught to listen to my elders." Elphaba teased.

"Hey! I am not that much older than you!" Galinda playfully hit Elphaba's arm. Elphaba laughed and in that moment she felt something she had never felt before.

"I love you Glin." Elphaba dared to say. Galinda was not expecting the word love to come from Elphaba's mouth. It was a pleasant surprise. Galinda smiled back at Elphaba.

"I think I am falling for you too Miss Elphaba." She sighed as she met Elphaba's lips in a subdued version of the kiss they had shared earlier.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: It's a little shorter than usual but I've been so busy with work I haven't had much time to write. I wanted to at least get something up for you to read so here is a little bit. Enjoy!**

Chapter 10

The rest of the afternoon flew by very quickly for the two. They finished up their shopping trip and headed back towards their dorm. Along the way they passed a flower cart and Elphaba purchased a single red rose for Galinda.

Galinda could not feel any happier than she already was. Elphaba had confessed her love for the blonde and demonstrated it as well. She thought back to the passionate kiss the two of them shared and the many subsequent kisses that followed. She had been disappointed when the sales lady had knocked on the door interrupted one heavy kissing seesion. She felt like the luckiest girl in all of Oz. Her excitement got even more so when Elphaba stopped to purchase a flower for her. The act in itself was enough to cause Galinda to want to wrap her arms around Elphaba and just hold her forever. She contained herself however because she was not sure how their whole new relationship thing was exactly going to work out. If in fact it would. Her smile quickly changed to a frown as many what-ifs invaded her mind.

"What is it my sweet?" Elphaba asked the blonde noticing her sudden shift in mood. She had decided to try and walk back to campus while pushing her wheelchair. It took a lot of convincing the blonde before she would finally allow it.

Galinda stopped walking and motioned for them to sit on a nearby bench. Elphaba quickly followed and parked her wheelchair right next to the bench. She sat down and patted the spot next to her for Galinda to sit in.

Galinda sat down and took one of Elphaba's hands in her own and began to stroke the back of it with her thumb.

Elphaba looked into Galinda's eyes with hurt look and then back at her hand. She pulled her hand from the grasp of Galinda's and linked her own two hands together instead.

"I can't Glin. Not in public." Elphaba tried to validate her reaction.

Galinda's frown deepened as she thought that her what-ifs had become a reality. What if Elphie could never give her what she needed in public? Galinda was a pretty social person and Elphaba was not in the slightest. Galinda liked to talk to the other girls about dates and Elphaba didn't talk to anyone but Galinda. How was this going to work? They were so different from each other.

"I was afraid of that." Galinda said a little more harsh than she intended.

The words that Galinda had just said stung Elphaba. She felt as if she had to try and make it up to the blonde in some way.

"I promise when we get back to the room we can do all the hand holding you want. Just you, me and hands." Elphaba tried to make the situation better for the blonde not realizing what she had just said.

At hearing this last statement Galinda just raised an eyebrow. Was Elphaba aware of what she just said? Galinda shrugged it off and continued to just stare at the ground.

"Elphie I don't know if I can do the whole hiding from everyone thing." Galinda honestly said. "I am willing to try for you but I don't know how long I can hold everything in. I don't even think I want to hold anything in."

Galinda stopped what she was saying and briefly looked up into Elphaba's eyes to gauge any sort of reaction. She was only met with eyes of understanding and compassion. This made it so much harder on the blonde to continue.

"Elphie, I love you and I want the whole world to know. I want to shout it from rooftops. I want to carve 'Galinda loves Elphaba' into trees. I want to dance with you at the school balls. I want to pass little notes to you in class and not worry if they will be intercepted and read. I want everyone to know that you are off limits. I want you to be mine and only mine." Elphaba looked on as Galinda finished her speech. The whole thing had caught her off guard.

Usually Elphaba was able to comprehend things pretty quickly but what just came out of Galinda's mouth was hard to take in. Elphaba wanted all of those things too but maybe in a different life. If things were different she could have those things. But being who she was, an introverted, anti-social, green girl, she did not feel she should be allowed to have those things.

"I don't want that." Elphaba lied and looked away. She did not wait to see the pain form in Galinda's eyes.

Galinda couldn't understand what just happened. A couple of hours earlier they had been kissing in a dressing room. Elphaba had confessed her love for the blonde and Galinda had reciprocated. She thought everything was going to work out from now on.

"How can you say you don't want those things Elphie? I thought you said you loved me." Galinda questioned. She needed some answers right now. Had this all been a joke? Had Elphaba just led the blonde on?

Elphaba heard the hurt in the blonde's voice and turned back around. She at least owed it to her to give her a propped explanation.

"I do love you Glin but you know me. I am horrible with people. The entire population of Shiz loathes me. How do you think they will treat you if they find out we are together? They will hate you too. Madame Morrible may even separate us from rooming together. Plus there's my position. The Thropp Third Descending dating another girl? How do you think that looks in Colwen Grounds? I'll tell you how good…not good at all. I can't have it known that I am in a relationship with anyone, much less another woman." Elphaba tried to explain to Galinda. Galinda however took everything Elphaba had been saying the wrong way.

"So you're saying I'm not good enough for you?" Galinda's bottom lip began to quiver as tears formed in her eyes.

"That is not what I am saying at all my sweet. Calm down." Elphaba tried to calm the blonde. Everything she had tried to explain had been taken the wrong way and twisted to fit the blonde's needs. She was always doing this. Twisting everyones words to fit her purpose. It aggravated Elphaba that Galinda wouldn't just listen to what she had to say.

"What I am saying is that I cannot risk being together with you publicly. When we are alone is a different story." Elphaba still tried to calm the crying girl.

At this statement Galinda stopped her crying and looked angrily at Elphaba. How could she dare say something like that to her?

"So you are saying I'm your dirty little secret then, eh? Some harlot you can have when it's convenient for you." Galinda was beyond irrational at this point. She jumped up from where she had been sitting and looked down at Elphaba.

"Look I may be blonde but I'm not dumb Elphie. I know that a relationship is about compromise and sacrifice and if you are not willing to do either then I don't see why I am wasting my time." With that said Galinda stormed off in the direction of their dorm alone.

Elphaba was left speechless on the bench as she watched Galinda disappear in the direction of Shiz. She figured it was best to let Galinda blow off some steam and then she would come to her senses and realize that is not what Elphaba had been talking about at all.

Or at least that's what Elphaba hoped would happen.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Chapter 11

When Elphaba arrived back in the room she found it to be empty. There were no signs that Galinda had been back since they left together earlier.

Elphaba sighed and went over to her desk to work on some homework. There was nothing she could do until Galinda got back.

Elphaba settled herself into her comfy chair in the corner and began to copy down formulas. It didn't take long for her mind to drift off into other subjects. She began to wonder if she had been right in what she was saying before to Galinda. Maybe Galinda was right after all. Maybe she had to learn to compromise.

"No Elphaba, don't let her trick you into thinking she was right." She said aloud. Elphaba would still not allow herself to believe that she had been wrong. Everything she told Galinda had been correct. The blonde just took everything the wrong way and twisted her words.

Elphaba settled back into study mode and blocked out any other emotions. She would not allow herself to feel sorry for herself. She would also not allow herself to worry about where Galinda may be at the moment.

Three hours passed and Galinda had still not come home. Elphaba was beginning to let the emotion of worry take over. What if Galinda had been kidnapped or harmed on the way back to the dorm? What if she was so angry with Elphaba that she could not bring herself to face her? That was the thing that worried Elphaba the most. She knew that she had her reasons not to follow her but now she was beginning to rethink her decision.

Another hour passed with still no sign of Galinda. Elphaba was pacing around in her little study area muttering incoherent words. She was about to grab her jacket and go search for the blonde when the door opened.

Galinda walked in and avoided Elphaba's gaze. Elphaba tried to say something to the blonde but as soon as she began to speak another figure walked into the room following closely behind Galinda.

"Good evening Miss Elphaba." The figure announced and gave the green girl a friendly smile. Elphaba's stomach was in knots.

"Good evening Miss Milla." Elphaba managed a courteous response. "What brings you here tonight?" Elphaba tried to act as if everything was normal. She had still not taken her eyes off the blonde. Galinda began to look in her closet and gather a few clothes.

"I'm just helping Galinda pick up a couple of things." Elphaba felt hurt. Why was Galinda leaving with clothes? Was she going somewhere? The look of confusion on the green girls face prompted Milla to continue.

"She is going to stay over in my dorm room tonight." Elphaba finally turned her head away from the blonde and looked towards Milla.

Milla could tell that everything was not exactly right between the two. Galinda had arrived at her dorm room five hours earlier crying. She had tried to calm the blonde down but had little success for nearly an hour or two. It wasn't until she had started asking Galinda questions that she had sobered.

_Four hours earlier…_

"_Galinda you need to calm down. Crying like this is not going to help anything." Milla tried to comfort the blonde who just hung to her friend tightly._

"_What is it? Is it something someone said to you? Is it Fiyero? I know that he has been a little hateful towards you lately but that's nothing to get teared up about." Milla soothed Galinda as she stroked her back up and down._

_Galinda was comforted by this motion but would not allow herself to speak just yet. She simply shook her head against Milla's shoulder. Milla felt this and guessed that the head shook meant no. She tried another question._

"_Is it Elphaba? Has she done something to hurt you Galinda?" At this Galinda suddenly stopped crying and looked up towards Milla. Milla took this as a sign of yes and continued to interrogate the blonde._

"_Okay so it does have to deal with Elphaba then. Did she hurt you Galinda?" Galinda didn't know what to say at this. Sure Elphaba hurt her. Not physically but mentally and emotionally she had. When Galinda was silent for a long time Milla didn't know what to do so she just continued to look at the blonde waiting for an answer._

"_Yes." Galinda finally managed to say._

_Milla was caught a little off guard. She thought Galinda would say no. Milla knew that Elphaba was not the nicest character but she always tended to be more sensitive to the blonde._

"_Did you two get in a fight? Did she hit you?" Milla continued to try and soothe the blonde's emotions._

_Galinda was a little shocked at what Milla had said. Of course Elphie wouldn't harm her._

"_We did get in a fight but she never laid a finger on me." Galinda shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She knew she was not ready for everyone to know her deepest and darkest secrets yet but she needed someone to confine in. The only girl she had ever trusted to do that had been Elphaba. The girl she was mad at._

_Milla saw Galinda's attitude change almost instantly. She went from being vulnerable to a little stubborn. Whatever she was hiding was going to take a lot out of Milla to guess. Milla decided that now was not the best time to press Galinda any further for an explanation and so she just left it as it was._

"_Maybe it's best if you stay with me tonight Galinda. My roommate has gone home for the weekend and so there's an empty bed. I don't want you staying in the same room as Elphaba if she really hurt you that badly." Milla offered Galinda a way out. Galinda took it with no second-guessing._

_Maybe if she ignored Elphaba then she would get her way and Elphaba would realize that she needed Galinda. Then the two of them could be together publicly._

_Galinda liked the plan that Milla had suggested and she offered a suggestion of her own._

"_Will you come with me when I go get my stuff Milla? I don't want to be left alone with Elphie just yet." Galinda pleaded. Milla could not deny such a request and so she agreed._

Back to the present…

Galinda had finished gathering all her clothes and had gone in the bathroom to get her shampoos and soaps for later. It was already really late and she was not quite sure she would take a bath at Milla's. She had ulterior motives for stalling like this. Maybe if she lingered long enough Elphaba would realize what she was missing and apologize in front of Milla and soon all of Shiz would know of their love. Galinda was unaware that Elphaba was still unwilling to budge.

Back in the room Milla waited for Galinda to finish gathering her bathroom stuff. She had taken a seat of Galinda's bed and stared over at Elphaba who was sitting on her bed with knees bent up and arms encircling her legs. She had been staring at the bathroom door the whole time Galinda had been in there.

"What exactly happened Elphaba?" Milla dropped the formalities. Her voice breaking the silence caught Elphaba a little off guard and she whirled around to see Milla staring at her. She suddenly felt her face flush, as she was aware she had been caught staring at the door.

"What do you mean?" Elphaba innocently asked. She wasn't sure what all the blonde had told Milla and was not about to tell her something that would be new news.

"I mean," Milla was annoyed, "why did Galinda come up to my dorm room a couple hours ago crying?" She then shot Elphaba a look that did not go unnoticed by the green girl.

Elphaba felt Milla's gaze upon her and tensed up. _Galinda had been crying when she went up to see Milla? What all could she have said to her? I know Galinda likes to ramble when she is upset but what could she possibly have rambled to Milla about?_ A look of terror suddenly arose on Elphaba's face. _What if she_ _had told Milla about their kiss? What if Milla was here to steal Galinda from her?_

Before Elphaba could form a response Milla shot another comment towards the green girl.

"Look I know you and Galinda didn't used to get along but I have seen her this past week and she is happier than she has ever been. Her social standing may be falling into the toilet but she doesn't seem to notice." Elphaba gave a meek smile at this comment. This went unnoticed by Milla as she continued.

"I don't know what went down earlier today and frankly I don't really care. What is between you two is your business, not mine. But when one of my best friends comes crying to me in the middle of the day then I start to worry. Your business becomes my business." Milla finished and just looked at Elphaba to see what her reaction would be.

Elphaba was having a hard time coming up with a response. She just stared back at Milla as her face fell to a frown once again.

"Galinda overreacted that's all." Elphaba tried to validate her side of the argument. Milla was not sure whether to believe this or not. She was not sure how trustworthy Elphaba was but she also knew Galinda. Galinda did seem to over exaggerate a lot of things.

Before Milla could ask Elphaba to expand on this Galinda came out of the bathroom.

"Ready?" Galinda asked Milla and still avoided Elphaba's gaze.

That was the first time Elphaba had heard Galinda speak since she had walked into the room with Milla. She watched as Galinda and Milla left the dorm room shutting the door lightly behind them. Elphaba was left alone. She looked over to Galinda's bed and longed for her to be there. If she would just allow Elphaba to explain then everything would be all right.

Elphaba went to bed that night and for the first time in years allowed herself to cry herself to sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Elphaba awoke the next day feeling more exhausted than when she went to sleep. Galinda was still not back. Elphaba couldn't help but feel sad as she looked over towards Galinda's bed where she should have been.

Just the day before Elphaba had been the happiest girl in all of Oz when she found out Galinda reciprocated her feelings. Now she felt nothing but loneliness. Maybe if she had never kissed Galinda then they would still just be friends. Elphaba could deal with being friends. She had never had one before and found that she liked it.

Elphaba maneuvered herself out of bed and into her wheelchair. Today was the big day. She was going to return to the infirmary and make sure everything was all right with her. The wounds on her legs had healed up nicely. They left faint scars that Elphaba knew from experience would eventually go away.

She wheeled herself towards the bathroom to get ready for the day.

XXX

Halfway down the hall Galinda had awoken with a headache. She was confused with her surroundings at first but then the events of yesterday slowly soaked in to her brain. She made a grunting noise and decided to get up. As much as she wanted to at the moment she couldn't avoid Elphaba forever.

Milla was still asleep as Galinda dressed for the day. She put on a pink dress that came just above her knees and some short high heels. She went over to the bathroom to fix her hair.

Just as she was about to put the finishing touches on her hair she heard Milla start to stir in her bed. Galinda turned around to look towards her friend. She had been so thankful to Milla for allowing her to stay here.

When Galinda and Milla arrived back at her dorm room the night before they did not do much talking. Galinda had seemed even more distant and Milla was a little irritated. She couldn't understand why the two were fighting and she was even more annoyed that no one would tell her what it was about.

Galinda finished her hair and went over to sit on the corner of Milla's bed. Milla opened her eyes and looked over towards the blonde.

"Sleep well?" Milla questioned Galinda. Galinda nodded in return and asked if Milla if she had slept well. When Milla also responded that she had Galinda got up from the bed.

"Thanks for last night Milla. I'm sorry that I couldn't find any words. Maybe in time I will be able to tell you everything." Galinda was sad that she had been unable to do so the night before.

Milla sat up in bed while Galinda spoke. She had heard the hurt in the blonde's voice and she knew that she was truly sorry that she could not share her secrets with her. It saddened Milla a little to think that Elphaba knew these secrets but not her.

"It's okay Glin." Galinda seemed unconvinced. "Really it is. I know that when you are able to talk about it then you will come to me."

Galinda thought for a moment and a slight smile appeared at the corner of her lips. Maybe she would be able to tell Milla eventually. Maybe things would work out between her and Galinda after all.

"I will. I promise." Galinda hugged Milla with all her strength. Milla was a little taken back at the force of the petite woman. Never in a million years had she pictured Galinda with such strength.

Galinda let go of Milla and looked at her friend.

"First thing's first though. I need to talk to Elphaba." Galinda nervously said. Milla knew it was the right thing to do and so she only nodded encouragingly at the blonde.

Galinda gathered up her dress from the day before and her bathroom supplies. Walking over to the door she looked back towards Milla.

"Thanks again." Galinda managed to get out. Milla could hear the nerves in the blonde's voice. She knew that whatever had made the most popular girl in Shiz this nervous had to be something huge.

"Anytime." She responded and watched as the Blonde woman made an exit.

XXX

Back in the room Elphaba had finished getting ready. She had hoped that Galinda would be back before she had to leave for the infirmary. When noon rolled around and Galinda was still not back Elphaba realized that she wouldn't be back in time. She needed to speak with Galinda and sort things out but she also needed to go to the infirmary. She decided that she had waiting all night for the blonde to apologize and she hadn't so one more hour wouldn't hurt.

Elphaba went over to her desk and jotted down a quick note for if Galinda did return and she was not there. Once she was done she picked it up and wheeled over to Galinda's bed and placed it on her pillow. The pillow that smelled of roses and strawberries Elphaba thought.

It was a quarter past twelve when Elphaba finally left the room. She had hoped beyond anything that Galinda would be there when she returned. She didn't know if she would be able to endure going back to an empty room.

XXX

Galinda made her way up to the dorm room that she shared with Elphaba. It took almost one hour, a couple muttered words, and about fifty twitches before she found herself in her hall.

_What if she has transferred rooms? What is we can't reconcile?_ Galinda was anxious to find out the answers to the questions she had been asking herself for the past hour.

Finally she gathered up enough courage and went to the door. She was not sure whether she should knock or just use her key to get in. It was her room, she shouldn't have to knock, but for some reason she felt like she should. She raised her arm up and tapped on the door a couple of times.

She waited for a response from the other side. What kind of response, she was not sure of. She didn't know whether Elphie would yell at her or just call her inside quietly. When a couple of seconds had passed and there was no response Galinda began to worry. Elphaba was always in the room. Always. The only times she went to the library were at night. It was mid afternoon. Elphaba was bound to be there.

Galinda raised up her hand once again and knocked a little harder this time. Maybe Elphaba was so lost in a book that she hadn't heard her the first time. A couple of seconds passed and still no response. Galinda was growing impatient. Was Elphaba ignoring her or was she simply just not there?

Galinda decided she had waited long enough and so she went into her pocket and pulled out her room key. She inserted it into the lock and twisted. The door clicked open and the blonde pushed the door in. She soon found the room to be empty and her butterflies had diminished.

"Elphie?" she called out making sure the green girl was not hidden anywhere. When she received no response she walked in and looked around the room. Everything looked the same as it usually did. Elphaba's desk was filled with books and papers and her bed made a little frazzled from the night before.

Galinda let out a sigh of relief. Elphaba had not up and switched rooms on her. That was a good sign. Galinda was about to leave when she noticed a piece of parchment on her pillow. She walked over wondering what could possibly be on the paper.

When she picked it up she saw the condensed handwriting that she recognized immediately as Elphaba's. Galinda fumbled with the paper a couple of times before she allowed herself to read it.

_Dear Galinda,_

_I don't know whether you will come back and read this or not but I didn't want you to worry._

Galinda smiled. Elphaba had thought about whether she would worry or not. She continued to read.

_I have gone to the infirmary for my appointment. You probably forgot about it._

Galinda had. It seemed like it was only yesterday that Elphaba and her had become such close friends.

_I shouldn't be too long and I shall return to the dorm as soon as it is over. We need to talk. Things have gotten out of hand._

Galinda couldn't agree more and she read on.

_Last night was the hardest night in my life. I could smell your essence in the room but your beautiful face was nowhere in sight._

Galinda melted. Elphaba hardly ever expressed her feelings and to have done so on paper, something permanent, was a big feat for her. Galinda smiled and continued to read.

_I hope you get a chance to read this because if you don't I probably won't have the courage to tell you later. I miss you so much my precious girl and I want us to work things out. Even if that means sacrifice. I love you Glin._

_Yours Truly,_

_Elphaba_

Galinda finished reading the letter and held it to her chest. Elphaba wanted to work everything out. She still loved to blonde.

Galinda felt genuinely happy for the first time in almost seventeen hours. Everything would work out between her and Elphaba. She knew it had to.

Still clutching the parchment to her chest she sat down on her bed to await the arrival of Elphaba.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Thanks to all of you reviewing and reading. This was my first attempt at a FF and I am pleased with how its coming along. I tried to not end this on a cliffhanger because I am not sure when I will be able to update next. I am going on a road trip for the next week and a half and so I am not sure how much internet time I will have...if any at all. So hopefully this will hold you over for awhile. I tried to make it fluffy goodness...haha. Enjoy this chapter and I will update when I get back! Thanks.**

**Chapter 13**

Elphaba's appointment had lasted longer than planned. She finally exited two hours after she had gotten there.

The appointment had gone well. The green woman was healing miraculously and no longer required the use of a wheelchair. She was in great shape.

Elphaba headed back in the direction of her dorm room hoping beyond all hope that Galinda had returned and read her letter. It took a lot out of Elphaba to write that letter and she did not want her efforts to be wasted.

Fifteen minutes later she was back up in her dorm building. She walked towards her door with an anxious feeling in her stomach. She wished that the blonde would be waiting for her inside, but at the same time she wished she didn't have to face her just yet.

Elphaba was still not exactly sure what she was going to say to the blonde. She just knew that last night was the most miserable night of her life. She missed Galinda terribly and would do just about anything to keep her. They had just found each other, it was too early to say goodbye.

Elphaba ruffled through her pockets in search of her key. Once she located it she placed it in the lock bracing herself for what may or may not be inside.

Galinda was sitting on Elphaba's bed when she heard the doorknob turn. She looked up with butterflies in her stomach. She had all this time to think of something to say and still her mind was blank. She hoped Elphaba had a game plan so she could just follow along.

The door opened to reveal the green woman. She was standing. Galinda smiled and went over to where Elphaba stood.

"Oh Elphie, I'm sorry I treated you so badly last night." The blonde went to hug Elphaba. Elphaba was appreciative that Galinda was apologizing and more appreciative at the touch she was receiving.

Elphaba tightened her embrace around Galinda. "I'm sorry too Glin." And then she kissed the top of Galinda's head and continued to hold her tight.

Both of them knew all was not forgotten from their fight yesterday and they still had a lot to discuss. They would not let that knowledge ruin their reunion however. They had both missed each other too much for that.

Elphaba was the first to pull away. She saw Galinda's tear stained face and raised an arm to wipe away her tears. Galinda hesitated knowing that it would sting Elphaba.

"Elphie don't. You'll hurt yourself." Galinda chided. Elphaba just smiled down at the blonde.

"Seeing you cry hurts me more." The green woman said as she wiped away Galinda's tears. The burn was not as bad as Elphaba thought it would be.

When Galinda finished crying for the moment she led Elphaba over to her bed. Elphaba gladly accepted the invitation and sat next to the blonde.

"Glin I need you to know that I am not sorry for what I said yesterday. I meant every word of it." Elphaba finally spoke. Galinda looked confused. She thought Elphaba was going to apologize to her. Elphaba continued. "I do however apologize for not making what I was saying more clear. I think you got the wrong idea."

Galinda was still unsure. "How so?" she asked.

Elphaba reached out and took Galinda's hand in her own. "We both know that my position is one of great importance in Munchkinland." Galinda nodded that she understood. Elphaba went on. "If anyone were to find out that I was romantically involved with anyone, boy or girl, they would intrude upon their life. I wouldn't want that for you. I want to shield you from that horrible place if I can." She gave Galinda's hand a reassuring squeeze.

"So you're not ashamed of me? Because I'm a girl?" Galinda timidly asked. She bit her bottom lip to keep it from saying anything else.

Elphaba looked hurt. Was that really what Galinda had thought yesterday? That she was ashamed of her?

"Of course not my sweet. I would shout my love from the top of the tallest tower in the Emerald City if I could." She smiled. Galinda smiled back. "It's just impossible for me to do so at the moment. Hopefully one-day things will cool down and I will be able to. And the fact that you are a woman has nothing to do with it."

Galinda sighed. If only it was one day now. She needed Elphaba in her life and needed everyone to accept her. She was not sure how she could do both if her friends didn't know the extent of their relationship with one another.

"I understand Elphie." Galinda hung her head low. She understood what Elphaba had said but it didn't make it any less painful for her.

Elphaba regarded the blonde another moment before she spoke again. "Galinda about what you said yesterday. You are not just some harlot I have on standby." She smiled trying to receive one from the blonde. It worked a little as Galinda tried to picture Elphaba with multiple girlfriends.

"I only want one woman in my life and that's you." Elphaba's eyes stared into Galinda's piercing blue ones.

The blonde stared straight back. She was still hurting from the day before but what Elphaba had just said made all of those fears disappear. Without a response Galinda leaned in towards Elphaba. Elphaba's eyes fluttered shut as she closed the distance between the two. Their lips met in a chaste kiss. How could they have gone so long without kissing each other? Now that everything was okay all she wanted to do was kiss Galinda all day long.

Galinda pulled back and looked into Elphaba's eyes. The green woman's eyes were still shut and it took a moment for them to open. When they finally opened Galinda could see the love that was encompassed within them.

"Oh Elphie, I'm so sorry." Galinda apologized again. "I never meant to leave you. I'd never leave you." She then leaned back towards Elphaba and captured her lips once again. This kiss was a lot more powerful than the last and not so chaste. The green girl moaned at this sudden feeling and leaned herself back onto the bed pulling Galinda along with her.

The blonde's lips parted slightly allowing Elphaba access to explore even deeper. Elphaba wasted no time. Their tongues clashed with each other's as they fought for dominance. Galinda's finally won and Elphaba sighed with contentment. There was a beautiful girl on top of her kissing her passionately.

"_Nothing could be better."_ She thought to herself. As if the blonde had heard her thoughts and thought it a challenge she moved her hands from Elphaba's side up the length of her stomach.

Elphaba moaned at the sudden touch. They had definitely not gotten past kissing yet and this was a big step for the two.

Galinda's hands continued to draw little circles on Elphaba's stomach driving the green witch crazy. Elphaba needed more contact. She reached down and grabbed the blonde witch's hand and led it up towards her chest. Galinda was all too eager to let herself be led.

They continued this steamed make out session until Galinda finally pulled away. Elphaba was the one to pout this time instead of Galinda. Galinda laughed at this exchange.

"Elphie we should probably slow down." Galinda looked down at Elphaba. She noticed that Elphaba's blouse was half unbuttoned and did not remember when this had happened. The green woman only looked back into the eyes of the girl still on top of her.

"Anything you wish my sweet." She smiled. Galinda smiled back and went to extricate herself from their current position. Elphaba went to follow noticing that her blouse was halfway off of her. She looked a little confused.

"Uh Glin…when all did this happen?" she motioned towards her blouse as she started buttoning it back up. Galinda laughed. Apparently she was not the only one unaware of how far their passion had taken them.

"No idea." She giggled.

An hour later, a couple of light kisses, and more chatter, the two of them walked hand in hand down to the cafeteria. They had come to the agreement that holding hands was not overly sexual in public. A lot of friends held hands…or so they wanted to believe.

As they entered the cafeteria they spotted a table off in the corner that was unoccupied. Galinda pulled Elphaba over to it and Elphaba sat while Galinda went to go get them something to eat.

Elphaba was waiting for Galinda to return when Milla approached her.

"Hello Miss Elphaba." She waved. Elphaba was surprised Milla was even talking to her at all without Galinda around.

"Err…hi Miss Milla." She responded. Milla went to take a seat next to the green woman. Elphaba watched her as she sat down.

"Oh hey Miss Elphaba you have some lipstick right there." She motioned towards her bottom left corner of her lip. Elphaba flushed furiously. Why hadn't Galinda told her?

"Uh…thanks." She said wiping it away. Milla smiled back at Elphaba.

"Since when did you start wearing lipstick?" Milla questioned the green girl. Elphaba looked away and spotted Galinda still in line getting food. She wished she was here now and could make up stories for her.

"I just started today actually." She smiled back at Milla. Milla noticed Elphaba glance at Galinda and a smile crept upon her face. She wasn't as dumb as most people thought she was.

"So did you and Galinda work things out then?" Milla waved at Galinda who was not looking back at their table.

"Yes we did. Thank you so much for letting her stay with you last night by the way. That was really generous of you." Elphaba thanked the girl. Milla just nodded.

"Anything for a friend." Milla replied.

Galinda came back with the tray of food and sat it on the table in front of Elphaba.

"Hey Milla! What brings you here?" The blonde asked cheerfully. She loved seeing the two to her friends interact.

"Just wanted to make sure everything was okay between you two." She greeted Galinda.

"And what's the verdict?" Galinda asked as she sat down and grabbed a bite of her roll.

"Well seeing as how Elphaba has now taken a sudden liking to lipstick and you seem to be wearing none I'd say the verdict is guilty." She smiled as she took a piece of bread from Galinda's plate.

Galinda dropped her fork at hearing this and Elphaba had to cover her mouth to keep from spitting out her juice. The two women both went wide eyed and stared at Milla.

Milla saw them give her the death stare and just laughed. "Oh don't worry you two. Your secret is safe with me." She winked.

Both women gave out an audible sigh of relief. They still didn't feel completely safe with Milla knowing but she had proven trustworthy in the past.

"Plus it's kind of obvious." Milla added. Elphaba went pale once again and Galinda tilted her head to the side in a confusing glare.

"Oh come on. You guys went from mortal enemies to best friends in a week. Something had to have changed. Either you realized you really loved each other instead of loathed each other or this has all been some big charade. My bet's on you crossed the line." Milla tried to explain to the two.

"Crossed the line?" Elphaba asked. Milla nodded.

"Yes, the fine line between love and hate. People can often mistake the two." Elphaba nodded in understanding. Milla seemed to know a lot more than she had given her credit for.

"Well I must be off." Milla rose from the table. Galinda grabbed hold of her arm to stop her from leaving just yet.

"Thanks." Galinda whispered. Milla smiled back down towards her friend.

"Anytime." She said to Galinda and then looked back towards Elphaba. "And if Galinda ever comes to my dorm room crying over you again, you will have more to worry about than if your new lipstick matches your dress." She finished and then winked towards Galinda who had been giggling. Elphaba however looked terrified. The last thing she wanted to do now was get on Milla's bad side.

After Milla had left they ate the rest of their meal in silence. Just the company of each other was enough for the both of them.


	14. Chapter 14 & Epilogue

_**A/N: So I know I haven't updated this story in forever and I said that it was complete…but after thinking it over I felt that the ending needed to be a little more concrete. So this is definitely the last chapter of this story. Hope it is a better one than the last. Sorry it took so long to write. Who knows? There could be a sequel eventually…but don't hold me to that.**_

* * *

Galinda and Elphaba ate their food rather quickly and hurried back up to their room, neither one of them wanting to be under the confines of society for too long.

"Are you okay with Milla knowing?" Galinda asked Elphaba once they had returned to their room.

Elphaba walked over to her bed and motioned for Galinda to take a seat next to her. The blonde wasted no time in filling the request.

"I'm not exactly sure." Elphaba admitted honestly and wrapped an arm around Galinda.

"What's not to be sure about?" Galinda asked and snuggled into Elphie's side.

"She seems understanding and all, but a part of me still thinks she might tell on us." Elphaba looked down into Galinda's blue eyes that were mere inches from her own.

"I trust her." Galinda replied. "And you should too. I don't think she means us any harm."

Elphaba sighed. Maybe Galinda was correct and Milla didn't mean them any harm. She had joked with them about the whole situation. If she could joke about it than it meant that she accepted it, correct?

"Just give me time." Elphaba smiled down into her love's eyes.

"Take all the time you need." Galinda reassured Elphaba that they were in no rush.

A couple of minutes passed between the two where Elphaba just held onto Galinda and Galinda leaned against Elphaba. They were enjoying the still new sensations of having one another so close.

"Elphie do you ever think about the future?" Galinda interrupted the silence as she played with Elphaba's fingers.

"Not really. Until I met you I didn't think I had a future." The green woman admitted and placed a kiss on top of Galinda's head.

Galinda smiled.

"Do you?" Elphaba asked as she rubbed her arm up and down Galinda's.

"Yes." Galinda looked off into the distance. "I didn't know that it would contain an amazingly sexy and smart green woman though." She giggled.

Elphaba blushed. Did Galinda really think that their futures would be spent together?

"What do you see in this future?" Elphaba asked and continued to stroke Galinda's arm.

"I see you and me living together in a little cottage in Frottica. We have two sons and one daughter. I stay at home to take care of the kids and you work to provide for our family. And when we are not busy taking care of family crisis's we make time for ourselves. We go on romantic dinner dates, and when we need some extra time to ourselves I call my mother and she comes to get the kids for the weekend. Then you and I reconnect in ways that we haven't even imagined yet." Galinda smiled as she recounted her vision of the perfect future. Until a couple of days ago the vision had always been her, a family, and a blurry figure. Now the blur was gone to reveal Elphaba in its place.

Elphaba closed her eyes trying to imagine the future as Galinda could. She smiled as her girlfriend talked about children and romantic evenings. Everything she had only ever dreamt about. It now all seemed like a possibility with the woman wrapped in her arms.

"Since I don't have my own dreams of the future can I steal yours?" Elphaba smiled to her love.

"Maybe not steal…but you can definitely share them." Galinda giggled and reached up to place a soft kiss on Elphaba's lips.

* * *

**EPILOGUE:**

A couple of years later when all of that was just a distant memory, Elphaba sat in the tallest tower of Kiamo Ko. She was wondering what would have become of her and Galinda's relationship had the wizard and Madame Morrible not deemed her wicked.

It seemed like such a long time ago to the green woman. She had made herself forget about all of the promises she had made to Galinda. It hurt her too much to think back to their once conceived future together.

Feeling as if she had waited long enough to see what had come of her old college girlfriend, she went over to the closet and pulled out her broom. She was going to find Galinda and see how her life had turned out once and for all.

"_Maybe," _she thought. "_Just maybe she has finally found someone to share that cottage in Frottica with."_

Elphaba looked around her dwelling and smiled. If she hadn't then maybe the two of them still held a chance.

The green witch mounted her broom and took off into the night sky, intent on seeing how Galinda's future had really turned out.


End file.
